‘Virtual fencing’ systems using GPS collars can reduce the amount of labour required for fencing and make pasture grazing for beef and dairy cattle more adaptable, say researchers from Poznan University of Life Sciences.
However, there is room to reduce costs of such systems, which use warning sounds followed by an electrical pulse if required to influence animal movement. They can also be made more applicable to other groups of ruminants, and for use over greater areas and with larger numbers of animals.
In a review of progress to date and future prospects, published in the journal Agriculture, the scientists said that the precision farming technology, which was originally developed in the late 1980s and has gained steady traction since, can simplify pasture feeding, which has advantages in terms of animal welfare and product quality but can be time- and labour-intensive.
Advancing a promising technology
There are companies now offering virtual fencing technologies in Europe, the US, Australia and New Zealand, they noted, with slightly different designs and warning systems.
“The evolving virtual fencing designed for grazing dairy and beef cattle opens up new opportunities for using available pasture land,” the scientists wrote, noting in particular its potential to considerably reduce labour needs compared to conventional and electric fencing, as well as its great potential for use in areas of high nature value, where fencing cannot be used.
However, research shows that improvements are still needed, they said, pointing to high costs and in some cases, lack of infrastructure on farms to support the technologies. There have also been examples of behaviour changes by animals resulting in the avoidance of areas of pasture.
They pointed to ongoing to work to try and integrate the monitoring capacity of virtual fencing, as well as to determine grazing areas according to cattle feeding groups, with a focus on making the technology more applicable to suckler cows and calves.
“Recent advancements in electronic communication and device design have the potential to significantly improve the effectiveness of virtual fencing technology while lowering costs. However, further evaluation is needed to determine their usefulness in precision agriculture systems,” they added.
